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The Quest of the Queen’s Tears

If you are not familiar with the work of Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, better known as Lord Dunsany, you should be. This very limited edition reprint of his short story The Quest of the Queen’s Tears is my tribute to the man and to the joy his work has given me.

The Quest of the Queen’s Tears has two elements that strongly appeal to me. First is Queen Sylvia herself, cold and dry, imperial and impervious, queen of the woodland realm. Who would not love her, or slay beasts for her love? The second, and perhaps the more powerful image, is that of the Gladsome Beast: “a synonym he for joy”. It is possible that neither of these figures would hold any power if it weren’t for the way in which Dunsany wrote them, but that is neither here nor there. These two characters began this thing for me.

After re-reading the story for the thousandth time, I felt compelled to illustrate the Gladsome Beast, and did so in colored pencil and ink on bristol. From there he blossomed into (onto) a bone panel, the first to incorporate any of my illustrative work. The idea for the book lingered until I encountered, by chance, an outstanding fabric that complemented but did not overpower the illustration. Small giclee prints were made of the beast, and these were professionally framed behind glass and set into the front cover. The pages are sewn in and the spine is backed for extra strength. The books have been hand numbered in front and signed in the back by me, making them the first books I’ve bound that include any sort of a binder’s mark.